Saturday, October 29, 2016

On October 26, San Francisco for Democracy sponsored a debate on BDS. Dana Bergen, a board member of Jewish Voice for Peace advocated in favor of boycotts, divestment and sanctions against Israel. Community educator, Dr. Michael Harris argued against it.

The debate was filmed, and clips will be released shortly.

Unfortunately, the format of the debate allowed a shocking free flow of abject lies from Dana Berger to go unchecked.

Until now.

During the debate, Dana Bergen stated

"About Gaza. Gaza has been under siege for many years now. Israeli is strangling Gaza. Gaza is not occupying Gaza in the sense that they are inside Gaza but they are controlling the perimeter of Gaza. They decide how much food goes into Gaza. Gaza has been obliterated by massive bombardment twice in recent years. They don't allow building supplies back in Gaza so there is just rubble. They have calculated how many calories they should allow into Gaza so that people are hungry but don't die because they are trying to torment the population. that is what they are trying to do."

Lies. Complete lies.

Dana Bergen's Claim: "Gaza is not occupying Gaza in the sense that they are inside Gaza but they are controlling the perimeter of Gaza."

Friday, October 28, 2016

While Hatem Bazian stood in UC Berkeley’s Sproul Plaza, claiming Palestinian voices on campus were “silenced”, half a world away, Palestinian activists violently disrupted an event with Hen Mazzig, an Israeli peace activist. Mazzig was at the University College London to discuss his humanitarian work in the West Bank.

After failing to have the talk cancelled by the university, demonstrators took matters into their own hands. Some forced a window open, in order to break into the venue. An angry mob screamed insults and pounded on the door, trying desperately to silence the Israeli human rights activist, in what they claimed was a “non-violent” protest.

Four police cars and 20 officers quickly arrived at the scene in an effort to prevent further escalation.

UCL students described the terrifying scene which caused some, including event organiser and Friends of Israel Society co-president Liora Cadranel, to flee in tears. Another student, Devora Khafi, suffered a panic attack following an alleged assault by a pro-Palestinian activist.Attendees were forced to lock themselves into a room to protect themselves against a 100-strong rabble gathered outside, demonstrating against the arrival of Israeli peace activist Hen Mazzig.Liora said: “I thought Hen Mazzig would be a brilliant speaker to engage with students on all sides of the political spectrum. His lack of bias makes him ideal to speak on a controversial issue.”
Palestinian activists have become the fascist brown shirts of our times, with raging mobs violently "enforcing" the cultural and academic boycott of Israel. Its yet another example of the ugliness that BDS brings to a campus

Josh Woznica, president of Bears for Israel, said that his group and fellow pro-Israel organization Tikvah are “coming together for the first time to present a strong, united front” against Thursday’s “International Day of Action for Palestine” demonstration. In previous years, he said, students at these rallies have gone so far as to openly call for terrorism against the Jewish state.Woznica said that the counter-protest, which he expects will be attended by over 100 people, is not aimed at anti-Israel students, but rather at the “70 percent who pass by and don’t know anything about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Our intent is to have a silent protest opposing the anti-Israel messaging of the ‘Day of Action,’ highlighting the importance of academic freedom and ending the double standard applied to Israel. We are not trying to convince the other side. We want the students to see there is another perspective. Anti-Israel groups scream and chant really catchy slogans, such as, ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,’ and present a false picture of what is happening in Israel. Our goal is to expose this.”
The people united will never be defeated. It was particularly gratifying to see all the pro-Israel students working together to counter intolerance at UC Berkeley.

Sunday, October 23, 2016

In response to a wave of anti-Israel advertisements appearing on Bay Area buses, Israel advocacy group StandWithUs recently sponsored a 4 week run of their own ads. The ads were displayed on 20 buses, throughout the city. StandWithUs has countered anti-Israel messaging on Northern California public transit eight times since 2011.

Nothing upsets the forces of darkness as much as when the Jews fight back. This counter messaging upsets the local extremist Arab Resource & Organizing Center (AROC) who have called for a public meeting to pressure the San Francisco Municipal Transit Authority to stop accepting these ads.From Facebook:NO MORE RACIST BUS ADS!Bay Area Community MeetingThursday, October 27th6pm518 Valencia Street, SFUpset at seeing racist ads on SF Muni buses? Want to do something about it? Join us on October 27th for a community meeting.What is the history and organizing behind these racist ads?What are strategies that have been used to challenge them in the past?What do we want to do to stop these racist attacks?

In this climate of heightened anti-Arab racism and Islamophobia, most recently with the targeted racist attacks on community leaders on college campuses, Arab and Muslim families continue to have to face the inclusion of hate speech and racist attacks against them on public transportation. For years the Bay Area community has fought back against these ads and their violent nature. Yet time and time again, we find that the city continues to allow them to drape buses throughout San Francisco. We will not let this go unchallenged. Let's come together to figure out how we want to challenge racism in SF.Lara Kiswani and her colleagues at AROC understand full well that the pro-Israel messaging ads on MUNI is in direct response to the propaganda war their associates have launched against the Jewish state. As StandWithUs CEO Roz Rothstein has explained in the past:“StandWithUs will not allow anti-Israel campaigns to go unanswered, no matter where they appear. Our goal is to set the record straight, and to inform the public about Israel’s challenges and extraordinary achievements in helping make the world a better place.” In addition to San Francisco, SWU ads have appeared in New York City; Houston, Texas; Missoula, and Helena, Montana; Washington, DC; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Chicago, Denver, and Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The ads and billboards will stop when the anti-Israel messaging stops. Its that simple, AROC.

Saturday, October 22, 2016

A quarter million are dead in Syria. The entire region has erupted in chaos. But its October, and its time for the context be damned Students for Justice in Palestine at U.C. Berkeley's "But pay attention to MEEEEEE" very public tantrum.

We can expect the rhetoric of eternal victimhood, incendiary chants, and maybe a die-in or two.

Free Palestine, End the Siege on Gaza.Immigrants and Refugees are welcome-No Human is Illegal.Affirming Global Solidarity with African Americans and Black Lives Matter.Thursday, October 27th, 2016

A call for activists and organizations on campuses across the world to organize massive protests on every college and university campus.

Make this call of action part of campus education by holding teach-ins, rallies, sit-ins, civil disobedience, and push for BDS activities.

No to Academic Complicity with Israeli OccupationNo to Study Abroad Programs in IsraelNo Investments in Apartheid and Occupation Supporting CompaniesNo to University Presidents' Visits to IsraelNo Campus Police Training or Cooperation with Israeli SecurityNo Joint Research or Conferences with Israeli InstitutionsNo Cooperation with Hasbara Networks on College CampusesNo to Targeting Faculty for Speaking Against Israeli CrimesNo to Administrative Limits on Free Speech Rights of Palestine ActivistsNo to University Coordination and Strategizing with the ADL, JCRC, AJC, Stand With US, ZOA, Israeli Consulate to Limit Students Pro-Palestine Constitutionally Protected Activities.*****This will be the second year Cheryl Davila is speaking at this event. Cheryl gained notoriety for hijacking the agenda of the Berkeley Human Welfare Commission for nearly a full year to push a divestment initiative, neglecting the poor of Berkeley in the process. Cheryl is now running for Berkeley City council from District 2, and has been looking towards SJP for some quid pro quo.

The people of Berkeley should know better to elect a councilperson beholden to such extremist special interests.Pro-Israel groups are mobilizing as well, to counter the demonization and inflammatory rhetoric of the group that is commonly dubbed "Students for Just us in Palestine".This should be interesting.

Open support for terrorists and Jew-haters. That's what we've come to expect from Students for Justice in Palestine. This week, SJP at UC Berkeley shared a link on their Facebook page to a Gofundme account, raising money for Ali Jiddah, a terrorist convicted of a 1968 bombing in Jerusalem.

Ali Jiddah served 17 years in an Israeli prison after the bombs he planted on Strauss Street in downtown Jerusalem exploded, injuring nine Israelis. His cousin Mahmoud served 17 years for a similar attack. In 1985, both were released in a prisoner swapIncidentally, rather than being "indigenous" Al Jiddah's father is from Chad, and is member of the Salamat tribe.

SJP has a long ignoble history of lionizing convicted terrorists and overlooking their crimes against the Jewish people. Their actions have contributed to a hostile climate on campus for Jews, Israelis and for all legitimate peace activists.

Thursday, October 13, 2016

A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on

From Wafa News

KHAN YOUNES, October 13, 2016 (WAFA) – Israeli troops stationed along the border with Gaza shot and killed on Monday night a 12-year-old child east of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip, according to medical sources.

The Ministry of Health said Abdullah Abu Mudaif was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers near the border fence. Local sources said the shooting came from Kissufim military outpost.

In the meantime, Israeli forces opened a hail of gunfire at Palestinians' homes and lands to the east of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. There were no reports of casualties, however.

From Al Arabiya:

A 10-year-old Palestinian boy was killed along the Gazan border late Wednesday, with a Palestinian official and an eyewitness accusing Israel but the army denying any exchange of fire.

Ashraf al-Qudra, spokesman for the health ministry in the Gaza Strip, which is run by Islamist movement Hamas, said the boy died when Israeli troops fired across the border east of Khan Yunes in eastern Gaza.

"Abdullah al-Naseef, 10, was killed by (Israeli) occupation fire close to his house in the Qarara municipality, near Khan Yunes," he said.

An eyewitness said the Israeli army opened fire from a military base near Kissufim along the border.

An Israeli army spokeswoman denied there had been any firing across the border.

"We are not aware of any incident," she told AFP. It is unusual for Israel to deny confirmed exchanges of fire outright.

From Al Bawaba News:A Palestinian child was allegedly killed by Israeli forces on Wednesday in the southern Gaza Strip evening, while Israeli authorities denied responsibility in his death.

Gaza Ministry of Health spokesperson Ashraf al-Qidra told Ma’an that 10-year-old Abdullah Nasser Atwa Abu Mdeif was shot in the back by a bullet on Wednesday evening in the al-Qarrara area east of Khan Yunis.

Abdullah was later pronounced dead at the Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis

The truthFrom COGAT: Abdallah Abu Nadif, 13-year-old boy from Alcarara in Gaza, was found dead yesterday evening as a result of a shooting that took place at a wedding in the area. The Palestinians are blaming Israel for this incident, but the truth is that the shooting did not come from the Israeli side. We send our condolences to the family and for this unfortunate incident.

Monday, October 3, 2016

President Barack Obama has ordered the United States flag be flown at half-staff in memory of Shimon Peres, Nobel Peace prize recipient and former President and Prime Minister of Israel.The proclamation reads:

“As a mark of respect for the memory of Shimon Peres, former President and Prime Minister of Israel, I hereby order, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States of America, that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and on all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia, and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, on September 30, 2016. I also direct that the flag shall be flown at half-staff for the same period at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations.”

This rare honor has also been extended to Nelson Mandela, Pope John Paul II, King Hussein of Jordan, Yitzhak Rabin and Anwar Sadat.

From Bears for Israel, UC Berkeley

h/t JM

Across the bay at San Francisco State University, Obama's directive was pointedly ignored by SFSU President Les Wong.